Lightning Strikes by Stevie Woods

Blurb:
On Alkya, a planet a long way from Earth, the Division of Investigation—Other Worlds—has set up a base where hundreds of personnel live and work. Among them are two men, Major Joshua Marsden and Lieutenant Matthew Ronson, who are part of one of the survey teams.

Shortly after Josh and Matthew confess their feelings for each other, their team embarks on a mineral survey mission to another planet. During a ferocious lightning storm, however, Josh is injured. After finding shelter in a cave, Matt looks after Josh while teammate Dennis braves the storm to go for help.

But when the storm’s intensity increases, and lightning strikes closer and closer, Matt grows concerned that their place of safety may turn out to be their grave…

Review:
Josh and Matt have been dancing around each other for a while, but finally they admit their love for each other. They make plans for dinner after they return from a seemingly straightforward mission to a nearby planet to collect soil samples. However, their plans are thwarted when a sudden storm leaves both men injured and hiding out in a cave.

This story was very action packed with a lot happening within its pages. The opening establishes the relationship between Josh and Matt and as such we are thrown into the start of a new relationship. This worked well as it allowed us to see them excited about their newly confessed love whilst also understanding their feelings when things start to get tricky for them later. The way that the action then took precedence over the characterisation did mean that we don’t get to find out much about these men, other than their jobs and their feelings for each other, but that didn’t impact too much on the story or the fact that the men are generally sympathetic. The main feelings I came away with from the characters were that they were good men who suffered stoically when pain came their way, were good at their jobs and who had a strong friendship between themselves and the only other main character, Dennis.

The action scenes were well described, some of which had me on the edge of the seat. This contrasted nicely with the quieter scenes later in the book. The focus is on the injury and recovery of the men, and as such the romance isn’t to the forefront of the story. Instead it’s interwoven through the way the men interact and worry for each other.

My one major niggle with the story is that, although the alternating first person narrative between Matt and Josh works effectively, there was something not quite right with the narrative voice at times, especially when we are shown the character’s thoughts. Every time it happened I was pulled out of the story slightly as I tried to puzzle out the change. However, that was only a slight niggle.

Overall this is an entertaining science fiction story which wasn’t too gadgety or alien filled for those who might be put off by the genre. I enjoyed reading it and would recommend for those looking for an action packed story.